NASA’s CHAPEA Project

Current Context : NASA’s CHAPEA project,  a year-long simulated Mars mission involved four volunteers of Nasa emerged from their 17,000 sq ft habitat at Johnson Space Centre.

ABOUT

• Crew Health and Performance Exploration Analog (CHAPEA) is a series of analog missions conducted by NASA.
• It will simulate year-long stays on the surface of Mars.
• Objective : to assess and collect data regarding NASA’s food system and understand and counter the physical and mental challenges astronauts will face, which will help during future space missions.
• Each mission will consist of four crew members living in Mars Dune Alpha, an isolated 1,700-square-foot habitat.
  • Mars Dune Alpha is a 3D-printed structure located at Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas.
  • It simulates a realistic Mars habitat to support long-duration, exploration-class space missions.
• The analog mission will be as Mars-realistic as feasible, which may include environmental stressors such as resource limitations, isolation, equipment failure, and significant workloads.
• During the mission, the crew will conduct simulated spacewalks and provide data on a variety of factors, which may include physical and behavioral health and performance.

INDIA’S PLANS FOR A MARS MISSION :

• ISRO is preparing for astronomy missions and exploratory missions to the Sun, Mars and Venus in the next few years.